Renewal of National Analogue Radio Licenses Signals FM Survival

No FM switch-off in sight for many years in Great Britain

The UK’s three national analogue FM and AM commercial radio network licenses will qualify for a further five-year renewal, from 2018, Ofcom has confirmed. The stations, Classic FM, Talksport and Absolute Radio, are owned by Global, Wireless Group and Bauer respectively.

Spotify now more popular than radio listening

Global expansion parallels Netflix success

The Swedish music streaming service Spotify is still far ahead of Apple and other competitors. It is has now become a crucial market factor also for the radio industry. Spotify’s free version has the largest reach of any digital music service in the UK, even outstripping many commercial radio stations, new research claims. A study by global market research firm TNS says that the free version of the music streaming service now reaches 16.8% of the UK listening audience. 

FM Unbeatable Listening Platform in Germany

Online radio strongest digital challenger, leaving DAB behind

A study on which platforms the Germans use to listen to the radio this year and the previous three years has been presented at the IFA Electronics show. 94 percent listen to radio on FM. This is a percentage that have been unchanged for the past four years. A third -  34.1%  - use the Internet for radio listening. Other digital radio is shared evenly; DAB 13.8, via cable 14.7 and satellite 13.9%.

Young Germans Are Abandoning Radio

Dark outlook for traditional radio and television. Smartphone takeover.

Especially for the young generation a smartphone is now indispensable. TV and radio hardly matters anymore. This shows a survey by TNS Emnid on behalf of the Bundesverband Digitale Wirtschaft (BVDW) among Internet users in Germany.

Will Slide Shows Give DAB Radio an Edge

Or how to move backwards into the future
UK digital radio manufacturer Pure has announced the Elan E3, a mid-price table-top DAB+ receiver which contains a 2.8-inch, full-color TFT display capable of displaying the DAB SlideShow service, often dubbed SLS. The radio is priced at £49.99 (US $66). This is the first time that a SlideShow-capable digital radio receiver has been available for under £50 and may stimulate UK broadcasters' interest in SlideShow functionality.

China Goes For Its Own Digital Radio Standard

New digital radio standard CDR soon available in 560 cities in China

China digital radio broadcasting in FM band - CDR - is a standard for terrestrial radio that operates in the FM band (87 MHz to 108 MHz).  CDR is operational since November 2013 by the authority of State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television of the People’s Republic of China (SAPPRFT). Three trial networks are presently on air in Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, By the end of 2016, CDR broadcasts will be available in more than 560 cities.